family.  Each of these venerable persons carried on his head a book, which he held with one hand.  They took three turns round the dome without uttering a word; then stopping before the door, one of them said, “O prince! what can we do for thee?  If thou couldst be restored to life by prayer or learning, we would rub our grey beards at thy feet, and recite prayers; but the King of the universe has taken thee away for ever.”

This said, the old men moved to a distance from the dome, and immediately fifty beautiful young maidens drew near to it; each of them mounted on a little white horse; they wore no veils, and carried gold baskets full of all sorts of precious stones.  They also rode thrice round the dome, and halting at the same place as the others had done, the youngest of them spoke in the name of all, as follows:  “O prince! once so beautiful, what relief can you expect from us?  If we could restore you to life by our charms, we would become your slaves.  But you are no longer sensible to beauty, and have no more occasion for us.”

When the young maids were withdrawn, the sultan and his courtiers arose, and having walked thrice around the tomb, the sultan spoke as follows:  “O my dear son, light of my eyes, I have then lost thee for ever!” He accompanied these words with sighs, and watered the tomb with his tears; his courtiers weeping with him.  The gate of the dome was then closed, and all the people returned to the city.  Next day there were public prayers in all the mosques, and the same was continued for eight days successively.  On the ninth the king resolved to cause the princes his sons to be beheaded.  The people incensed at their cruelty towards Codadad, impatiently expected to see them executed.  The scaffolds were erecting, but the execution was respited, because, on a sudden, intelligence was brought that the neighbouring princes, who had before made war on the sultan of Harran, were advancing with more numerous forces than on the first invasion, and were then not far from the city.  It had been long known that they were preparing for war, but their preparations caused no alarm.  This news occasioned general consternation, and gave new cause to lament the loss of Codadad, who had signalized himself in the former war against the same enemies.  “Alas!” said they, “were the brave Codadad alive, we should little regard those princes who are coming to surprise us.”  The sultan, nothing dismayed, raised men with all possible speed, formed a considerable army, and being too brave to await the enemy’s coming to attack him within his walls, marched out to meet them.  They, on their side, being informed by their advanced parties that the sultan of Harran was marching to engage them, halted in the plain, and formed their army.